is there something i should know? Archives - Vinyl From The Vault

Duran Duran “Is There Something I Should Know”

sfilzen — Tue, 16 Feb 2021 20:12:27 +0000

Duran Duran “Is There Something I Should Know” 1983. Today, February 16th, is (former) Duran guitarist Andy Taylor’s 60th birthday (b. Andrew Taylor, 1961). Duran Duran released “Is There Something I Should Know?” as a stand-alone single in the UK where it entered the chart at #1 (their first top of the chart single). In the US it went to #4 and the band included the track on the re-release of their debut LP Duran Duran for the US market. This 12″ single has the “Monster Mix” – it’s mainly an instrumental with plenty of extras: keyboards, sound effects, a nice little rockin’ guitar solo for Andy and a ton of funky bass for John. The B-side to the 12″ has another instrumental, “Faith in This Colour.” On the 7″ single in the UK there’s an alternative version: “Faith in This Colour (Alternate Slow Mix)” and in the US the B-side to the 7″of “Is There Something I Should Know” is “Careless Memories,” the band’s second single released in ‘81.

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Duran Duran “Duran Duran”

sfilzen — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 17:06:22 +0000

Duran Duran “Duran Duran” 1981/1983. On this day, April 25th, in 1983, Duran Duran reissued their debut record in the USA, Canada, Japan, Mexico, Taiwan and South Africa, due mainly to the phenomenal success of their sophomore release, Rio.

There were three major differences between the 1981 and 1983 release: 1. “To The Shore” was gone, making way for a new track the band had recorded “Is There Something I Should Know?” (which debuted at #1 on the UK charts and reached #4 in the US), 2. The longer Night Version of “Planet Earth” was replaced regular single version of “Planet Earth,” and 3. the cover art was completely different, changing from a New Romantic photo of the band, complete with puffy pirate shirts and alternately dyed black or blonde hair, with an updated picture that has the boys wearing either vaguely safari leather jackets (Simon) or biker jackets (Andy) and freshly updated hair colors (blonde tips for John and fiery orange for Nick). (Roger, Simon and Andy seem to be au naturel.) (There was a common, no-need-to-update thread between the album cover photos, though: pillowy, pouty lips). The re-release of Duran Duran was a success – the album hit the Top 10 in the US.

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Duran Duran “Is There Something I Should Know?”

sfilzen — Tue, 06 Sep 2016 19:46:53 +0000

Duran Duran “Is There Something I Should Know?” 1983, b/w “Careless Memories.” It’s the first day of school for our young Vault member and I don’t have a lot of back-to-school music (who does?), so a hit single with lyrics questing for knowledge will have to fill the need. (Granted, the song was not referring to a 6th grader’s desire to learn history, science and math but rather “the typically artsy Duran Duran lyrics deal with a difficult romantic relationship in rather obtuse terms, including such odd turns of phrase as “and fiery demons all dance when you walk through that door/Don’t say your easy on me ‘cause you’re about as easy as a nuclear war.” – Allmusic) (though I would argue that my kid walking through the door does often recall fiery demons AND a nuclear war)

“Is There Something I Should Know?” is D2′s 8th single, released as a stand-alone and then included on the US re-release of their debut Duran Duran album. The single debuted at #1 in the UK and reached #4 in the US in 1983. In the UK the 7″ single has the instrumental “Faith in This Colour.”

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Duran Duran “Is There Something I Should Know? (Monster Mix)”

sfilzen — Mon, 13 Apr 2015 16:09:38 +0000

Duran Duran “Is There Something I Should Know? (Monster Mix)” 12″ single, 1983. EMI/Tritec Music Ltd. Released as a stand-alone single on March 19, 1983, it was Duran Duran’s first #1 single in the UK and hit #4 on the US Billboard chart in August of that year and added to the US re-release of their debut self-titled album.

The Monster Mix is mainly instrumental, featuring many synth-sounds like the pronounced sound of breaking glass, a not-so-subtle reference to the song’s lyrics, as well as a greater highlight of the bass line. The B-side is the instrumental “Faith in this Colour,” at regular tempo (according to Wiki the UK 7″ release originally featured a slow mix which included unauthorized samples from Star Wars); the US version featured “Careless Memories” as the B-side to “Is There Something I Should Know?”

I very distinctly remember seeing the video for “Is There Something I Should Know?” at my friend’s house, the only one at the time who had MTV, and being absolutely blown away by the music and the beauty of Duran Duran. So much so that my next haircut was a blond side-swept flop to imitate Simon Le Bon’s style.

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